COUTURE: THAI BRAND BUSARDI GOES GLOBAL IN REGAL STYLE

Busardi

Showing for only the second time at Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week, the mother-and-son team of Thai brand Busardi impressed viewers with their timeless, elegant dresses.

“I didn’t know what to expect,” said an American spectator after the show on July 7. “But it was a really pleasant surprise. Everything was beautiful.”

Busardi: playing with the light.

Busardi’s Autumn-Winter 2015 collection had a majestic quality, in keeping with the “queen of the night” theme. According to creative director Busardi Muntarbhorn, the designs were meant to show the victory of light over darkness, and love over fear.

That’s a tall order for mere clothing, but the collection - shown in a grand Parisian building, where the models walked from room to room, with light from outside flooding in - managed to deliver on its promise.

The designer in fact played with darkness and light, using a range of colours for the gowns, including black, navy, deep purple, silver, electric blue, pink-beige and sky hues.

The most striking piece was perhaps a black brocade cape and dress festooned with feathers and incorporating Busardi’s signature guipure lace appliqué. This was supposed to embody fear, but it garnered expressions of admiration.

Besides brocade and silk, Busardi also employed duchess satin, organza, Chantilly lace and embroidered tulle, among the fabrics.

Busardi: a gown meant to embody "fear".

The artistry of the designs reflected the Thai reputation for superb tailoring and also highlighted the tradition of craftsmanship.

Co-founded in 2009 by mother and son, Busardi and Tuck Muntarbhorn, the brand is a semi-couture concern based in Bangkok, and it draws on the skills of artisans in the heart of Thailand. It was the first Thai label to show during Paris Haute Couture Week last season.

Before launching the brand, Busardi Muntarbhorn was creative director and head designer at the family-owned Yoswadee, founded by her mother and currently described as Thailand’s oldest surviving fashion house. She thus comes from a tradition of couture and is now aiming to go global, with Tuck’s expertise.

“She does the designs, and I do everything else,” Tuck told Tasshon with a smile.

Busardi also worked with Austrian designer Nora Rieser for the accessories of feather headpieces, masks and collars, and Rieser said it was a pleasure to see her creations presented on the runway. 

Nora Rieser

She produces custom-made pieces, which were being shown for the first time during Couture Week. The feathers are all individually cut, draped and shaped by hand before being shown onto calf-leather bases, she said. With colours going from berry red to shiny black, the pieces are meant to complement the dresses with which they’re worn.

In Busardi’s case, the match was memorable, and the models wearing the gowns and “feather art” did so with confidence and verve.

Another aspect that made the show stand out was the diversity of the models, representing African, Asian and European origins. With this, as with the designs, Busardi is showing the way to go. - L. McKenzie and J.M. De Clercq.

Busardi: the regal look.

Busardi Muntarbhorn (right) and her son Tuck.

COUTURE WEEK: MIXED FEELINGS AT PATUNA'S GOTH FEST

Judging from the comments made after Patuna’s Autumn-Winter 2015-2016 collection in Paris, one either loves or hates the creations of this Georgian-born designer.

Patuna: vetvet ensemble

An enthusiastic spectator with multi-hued hair gushed, for instance, that the show was “spectacular, amazing”, while a dour man who seemed to be a fashion buyer said the designs were “not in the least beautiful”.

“I didn’t like it at all,” he told Tasshon. “That’s not the way to use fabrics like velvet.”

Some spectators applauded loudly, while others declined to clap, making a quick exit from the Hotel du Louvre, where the show took place on July 6.

“There was just too much going on with those dresses, and some of the models didn’t seem to know what they wanted to do,” said another viewer.

The event started with a performance by singer Flowr, dressed in black and belting out the single “Logo” in melodramatic fashion, with accompaniment from pianist Denis Horvat. That set the stage for the models who emerged onto the runway doing what seemed a version of the goose step. Whatever it was, it had many spectators bemused.

Patuna: lace gown.

To say that the designs were daring would be too easy. They were over the top, eye-catching and intriguing, and will especially appeal to people who appreciate evening wear in which baroque meets biker-rock.

These were gowns, in fact, that instantly conjured up the image of leaping onto a Harley-Davidson motorcycle to head to a Gothic ball.

Patuna said that her ideas spring from art and that she used the French capital for inspiration, mixing trends from the 1930s with modern themes.

“Paris and France always inspire me,” the designer told Tasshon. “I love the architecture and history. That's why I called this collection 'Moonlight in the Streets of Paris'."

Employing silks, laces, velvet, chiffon, and other fabrics, she produced dresses that indeed mixed various influences and perhaps also reflected her own background.

The designer

Born in Georgia into a family of artists, Patuna studied ballet, drama and art. She eventually went into the medical field and became a dental surgeon, but she left this sector seven years ago to pursue her passion - fashion - and is now based in the United States.

As one spectator noted, if haute couture fails, Patuna will always have something “to fall back on”.

But with her engaging personality and individual style, the designer seems sure to increase her following, and among clients rather than dental patients. - J.M. De Clercq and L. McKenzie

Patuna: pink is for partying?